DTS Chapel

Chapel services include a time of prayer, music, and preaching. During the Spring and Fall semesters, Chapel is scheduled from 10:40-11:15 a.m. Tuesday through Friday in Chafer Chapel. We invite speakers from our campus, local churches, parachurch agencies, and other various venues. Our schedule features the following annual events:

• Nathan Maier Series in Bible Exposition (Fall)
• Mission and Evangelism Lectures (Fall)
• Spiritual Life Conference (Spring)
• Griffith-Thomas Lectures (Spring)
• Senior Preaching Week (Spring)

Chapel Policies and Questions

What is chapel?

The administration and faculty strongly believe in the great contribution and vital role of chapel and its ministry of encouragement, worship, and community development. Prayer needs, campus announcements, and items of general interest are all shared during this community time of rest, relief, and renewal. During the fall and spring semesters, chapel is held from 10:40 to 11:15 a.m. each day, Tuesday through Friday. During the summer sessions, chapel is held every Wednesday from 10:10 to 10:30 a.m. in the Lamb Auditorium. Summer Chapel attendance is not required. There is no chapel during fall break, winter break, spring break, or reading week.

Who is required to attend chapel?

All students who are enrolled in a degree or certificate program are required to attend chapel.  This includes full and part-time students on all campuses, online-only students, students with classes only on Mondays, weekends, or evenings (starting after 4:30 p.m.).  Non-degree, D.Min., and Ph.D. students are not required to attend chapel.  There is no chapel requirement during the summer. The definition of attendance will be left to the honor and integrity of the student, but certainly implies more than “showing up and reading or studying” or “walking in and walking back out.”  The table below is based upon approximately sixty chapel sessions available each semester.

How many chapel sessions must I attend?

Days per week in daytime class (Tue-Fri)	Total Chapel Requirement
4	40 Chapels
3	30 Chapels
2	20 Chapels
1	10 Chapels

The requirement for Dallas Campus students follows the table above, which is based on the number of days the student attends daytime classes (7:45 a.m.-4:30 p.m.) Tuesday through Friday.  Attendance/participation in the DTS Chapel Choir counts for chapel credit on days of rehearsal.  The requirement for online-only students, students with classes only on Mondays, weekends, or evenings (starting after 4:30 p.m.), or extension-site students is an online requirement of 10 chapels per semester.

Where must I attend chapel?

All students enrolled in daytime classes on the Dallas campus are expected to attend chapel services in person. Only online-only, Monday-only, evening-only, weekend-only and extension-campus students are permitted to view or listen to chapel messages per semester on the Seminary’s website via on-line streaming or podcast as part of the chapel requirement.  Either audio or video formats are acceptable, but the message must be from the current semester.

What are the World Evangelization Conference (WEC) attendance requirements?

Attendance is required for the spring World Evangelization Conference for at least two full days (all regular sessions scheduled between 8:00 a.m. and 12:30 p.m. on the attended days) or at least five individual sessions throughout the week. This is in addition to the regular chapel requirements for the semester. All students enrolled in Monday-only classes, evening-only classes (starting after 4:30 p.m.), weekend-only classes, online-only classes, or extension-site classes have an online requirement of two WEC sessions. (See 4.2.5 for acceptable media.)

When do I report my chapel attendance?

Students must report meeting their chapel attendance requirement online. Chapel attendance is reported to the Dean of Students’ Office two times each Fall and Spring semester in accordance with the procedure and time frames published each semester in the chapel schedule. Students must attend at least half of the semester’s required chapels during each reporting period. There is no chapel requirement or reporting during the summer.

• Fall 2011 Attendance Period #1 ends 10/14/2011. Must report between 10/7/2011 and 10/28/2011.
• Fall 2011 Attendance Period #2 ends 12/16/2011. Must report between 12/9/2011 and 12/30/2011.
• Spring 2012 Attendance Period #1 ends 3/2/2012.  Must report between 2/24/12 and 3/16/12.
• Spring 2012 Attendance Period #2 ends 5/4/2012.  Must report between 4/27/12 and 5/18/12.

How do I report my chapel attendance?

1. Go to CampusNet.
2. Enter your student ID number and password. Make sure your student page is set for the current academic semester.
3. At the top of your student information page, move your cursor over "Spring 2011."  Follow the dropdown menu and click on "Chapel Attendance."
4. In the box at the bottom of the screen, click "Yes" or "No" to indicate whether you met your requirement, and then click the "Submit" button.

If circumstances beyond one’s control prevent fulfillment of the attendance requirement during a reporting period, a request for excuse must be filed in the Dean of Students’ Office prior to the end of the reporting period during which the absence(s) occurred.

How can I request a chapel reduction?

Requests for chapel attendance reductions must be made during the first two weeks of each semester. Requests will not be accepted after that time. Forms are available in the Students Services Office on the third floor of the Walvoord Student Center or you can download the form with the button below. Requests for reductions based on employment-related changes that occur during the semester are permitted as needed.

Chapel Reduction Form

What are the chapel policy violations?

Both failure to meet the chapel attendance policy and failure to report by the deadline are considered to be violations of the chapel attendance policy. Repeated violations will result in a letter of notice from the Dean of Students that will be placed in the student’s file.

What are the commencement chapel and ceremony requirements?

The faculty believes the commencement events are a vital part of the academic calendar. All nongraduating students are encouraged to attend the commencement chapel and the commencement ceremony to show support for the graduates.